Cyn climbed higher and higher, his wings thundering and his hot breath creating rolling clouds of steam. “I've got you, Mate,” he said, his voice emerging from the jaws of the beast who held me, deeper but still familiar.
I wished I could enjoy my first sight of my mate's dragon—the beast who had recognized me before Cyn had, the predator who had mated me along with the man. He was glorious, his scales shining in the moonlight, tinted with silver and darkened with shadows. The great wings that held us aloft shone more softly, their dark membranes showing hints of red. Massive horns crowned Cyn's head, as if to remind everyone that this was no ordinary dragon. They swept up from his temples and back, drawing the eye to the line of little horns that ran down his neck. Everything about the dragon screamed danger, but to me, he was beautiful. Unfortunately, I was too sad and scared to appreciate that beauty.
Cyn veered left, gliding over the Forgotten, then over the city walls. Below us, Horns shouted and pointed. But they couldn't stop us, not even the Okons with their feathered wings. They didn't dare chase down a dragon, much less one who was also their king. All they could do was report the sighting and note the direction we were headed. I didn't think it would matter.
I didn't ask Cyn where he was taking me. I wasn't sure he'd hear me above the whistling of the wind anyway. Morose, feeling utterly defeated, I laid across his claws, using one as a shield to block the wind. The world passed beneath us, the lights of Dralbara fading to darkness. Only the light of the moon was left.
My clan had turned on me. Yes, they were enchanted and therefore innocent. I didn't hold them responsible, but it still hurt. And it meant my home wasn't safe anymore. Neither was Cyn's. So where would we go? What would we do? And why wasn't Cyn taking us back to the castle? I couldn't process it all. So I just closed my eyes and held onto my mate. As long as we were together, all was not lost.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The cold forced me to huddle in my cloak, but then Cyn breathed fire before him, flying through the residual heat to warm me. In that manner, he took us across Darimar. I was huddled in my cloak, safe within his claws, so I didn't see where we were headed, but when his altitude diminished, I poked my head out to take a peek.
We were above a vast mountain range, descending toward a clearing on one of the peaks. The sun was rising behind the jagged line of rock, making their caps of snow glitter. Despite the harsh winds, Cyn brought us down without issue, and hovered over the ground to set me in the snow before landing. He shapeshifted back to his man form, and I hurried to hand him my cloak. Without a word, my mate covered his naked body with the cloak, then pulled me into it with him.
“This way, Mate,” Cyn said and strode toward the treeline, his feet melting the snow.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“One of my sanctuaries. My favorite. Don't worry. We're safe here.”
Cyn drew me through the trees, the wind vanishing once we were among the stout trunks. I huddled against him for more than heat, my very soul wounded by what had happened in the Forgotten. But then, up ahead, I saw our destination. I nearly stumbled.
“What is it?” I asked.
“A shelter against winter.”
“It's like a giant greenhouse.”
The King led me to a door in the enormous glass structure as he said, “Yes. That's exactly what it is. A home within a greenhouse. I had the idea for it when I was overseeing the construction of the greenhouse over the kitchen garden.”
The greenhouse door wasn't locked, but then I guess that wasn't a problem up there. Animals couldn't maneuver a door handle, and they were the only living things on that mountaintop. Other than us.
Cyn ushered me inside, and warmth smacked me in the face. Heat and humidity. I stepped out from beneath the cloak as he shut and locked the glass door. My stare flew around the space, unwilling to land in one spot for long. It wasn't just a home inside a glass house. It was a massive house, two stories tall, built of stone and timber, with mullioned windows and sharp-pitched roofs inside an enormous greenhouse. A fantasy place that instantly felt like home. Every detail of the house, from the carvings under the gables to the corbels hanging below the eaves, drew me in and made me feel welcome. And surrounding the home was a magical garden full of fruit trees and vegetable beds. A few flowers bloomed here and there, but the space was mainly dedicated to plants that produced food.
“A sanctuary,” I whispered. “Self-sufficient.”
“Yes.” Cyn took my hand and grinned.
Cyn's movement cast the cloak open, showcasing his glorious nudity, and within that garden, he looked like a wild god, come down to Serai to bring summer to a patch of ground within a winter landscape. He was utterly beautiful and undisturbed by what we'd gone through. In fact, the King looked pleased to be there, as if all his cares had melted away.
Cyn took me to the front door of the home, stopping to pick two peaches on his way there. He handed one to me and bit into the other. I stared at him, bemused, as he opened the door and urged me inside.
“I built this place after a particularly harsh winter,” Cyn said as he closed the door behind us.
A cozy space welcomed us. The furniture was simple but appeared comfortable, with thick cushions and blankets folded over the arms of chairs. A cold fireplace stood to one side, utterly unnecessary. Cyn strode through the room, depositing my cloak over a high-backed chair along the way. The remnants of my depression vanished under the sight of his perfect ass and the muscular expanse of his broad back. I followed my mate like a puppy.
“I stock the larder every autumn,” Cyn said as he paused so I could catch up with him. He took my hand and led me into a kitchen that was larger than the front room, complete with a massive cold cabinet, stone counters, a wood worktable, and a walk-in larder with shelves full of bags of flour, baskets of nuts, tubs of lard, crates of dried beans, and more. Between the garden, the forest, and the larder, all the supplies we might need were there.
Cyn waved at a door. “The cellar is stocked with wine and ale as well as dried meat.” He took me through an archway near the cold cabinet and into a hallway that led to a staircase. We went upstairs, into another corridor, then down that. Cyn waved his hand at rooms as we passed. “Library, dressing room, bathroom, and this is my bedroom.”
He took me into the room at the end of the corridor and let go of my hand. Before me spread a large but—compared to the royal apartments at the castle—simple space, with a sturdy bed big enough for three, bedside tables to either side, a dresser with a tri-fold mirror, and some chairs set before another unnecessary fireplace. A window near the bed had a bench built into its nook, and the open curtains framed a garden view.
I stepped into the room, made a circle around it, and laughed. “This is amazing!”
“I'm glad you like it.” Cyn came to me and pulled me into an embrace. “Ru, I'm so sorry about your clan.”
Instead of speaking, I laid my head on his chest and tightened my arms around him.
